


Chance Encounter

by Zorro_sci



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Rape, Science Boyfriends, Victim Blaming, protective!tony
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-14
Updated: 2014-08-14
Packaged: 2018-02-13 04:46:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2137476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zorro_sci/pseuds/Zorro_sci
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bruce had spent years trying to forget what had happened to him in college.  He tried not to think about it, and moved on.  He even has a steady relationship with Tony now.  But he can't hide from the truth when he and Tony run into his attacker.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Scars

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a prompt on Avengerkink: http://avengerkink.livejournal.com/19458.html?thread=46409986

Some things you can never forget. They leave marks on your memory. Sometimes those marks are good, gentle kisses of moments you wished would last forever, but more often than not they're scars. Bruce Banner knew that better than most. His mind was so full of scars he sometimes wondered how that wasn't all that was left of him.

His father had been the main contributor. Leaving angry wounds on young Bruce's body and soul. The other kids at school had left their imprint as well. Their jeers and taunts at the smart kid, the kid who always wore long sleeves even on the hottest days, the kid who kept to himself, marring his childhood even further. Then there had been General Ross. A man who claimed to value his genius and expertise, but in the end only wanted to use him. He too had left no small amount of damage in his wake.

Bruce's only solace among the myriad of people who seemed to wish him harm was Betty. She had always tried to soothe the aches caused by the others. She had always seemed to know what to do. She knew when to push, and when to back off; when to urge Bruce to talk, and when to silently show her support.

A perfect example was when Bruce met her for coffee one morning when they were in college. Though Bruce was usually a man of few words, he was quieter than normal that morning. His silence was concerning, so Betty pressed for an explanation.

Bruce wrote it off as being tired because his roommate had hosted a kegger the night before. He said the attendees were drunk and loud. He also recounted that one party-goer in particular was especially insistent that Bruce pay attention to him, and refused to leave him alone even as Bruce tried to avoid him.

On the surface, it all seemed innocent enough, but Betty knew Bruce. She knew his little tells, knew how to hear what he wasn't saying, and knew that Bruce's silence was more than the result of sleep deprivation. So, she knew that when he said some other student "refused to leave him alone" he didn't mean he wouldn't stop talking to him. He meant he had violated him.

Betty never spoke the knowledge outloud, never asked him to talk about, and never mentioned that night again. She knew that doing so would only make things harder for Bruce. But she could also sense when that night came back to haunt him. The way his face clouded over never was lost on her, and when it did, she stayed close and let him know she was there.

In that, as in so many other things, she was his rock. She anchored him so he didn't get lost in the tempestuous seas of his mind. At least she did, until even she wasn't enough to keep him grounded and he fled to face his demons, (one of which now had a physical form), alone.


	2. Anchors and Wings

If Betty had been an anchor; solid, steady, safe and grounding, then Tony was a pair of wings. The billionaire was flighty, unpredictable, and flew straight into some of Bruce's biggest insecurities. His erratic approach to life and relationships was dangerous in light of the storm that was always raging inside of Bruce, but somehow it managed to lift him above his trouble. It might not have provided stability, but it took him to places he never knew he could go before.

Bruce supposed that was why he had given him a chance. That must have been the reason he stayed, when logic dictated that he should have left as soon as he was able to after the Battle of New York. Still, he found himself drawn to Tony. Drawn to the way he made Bruce feel freer that he ever had before.

There were obvious problems. Tony's drinking was more than a little triggering for Bruce, and he hadn't forgotten about the Hulkbusters the billionaire designed. Yet they made their way past those things in their own unique style. That is to say, Tony blurted out exactly what he was thinking about them with all the finesse of a bull in a china shop, and the two of them awkwardly talked it out until they reached a solution.

That was their way. When they worked they communicated through experiments and equations with the grace and dexterity of ballroom dancers, but life outside the lab was talked about with complete, gut-wrenching, bare honesty. There was no pretense, and it was both terrifying and liberating.

Given their strange way of interacting with each other, it shouldn't have surprised Bruce when Tony waltzed into the lab one day and without any introduction declared that he really liked the other scientist and would like to take him out for a date. That kind of candor was their standard operating procedure. Still, it caught Bruce by surprise. A surprise that was almost matched by the acceptance that had fallen out of his mouth before his mind gave it permission.

Bruce and Tony shouldn't work as a couple. Between the two of them they had enough baggage to fill several cargo planes, and Tony had nearly as many scars as Bruce himself. Yet somehow in spite of this, or oddly enough perhaps because of it, they fit like interlocking pieces of a puzzle. 

For all his differences from Betty, one thing Tony shared with her was the ability to read Bruce like a book. Only this time Bruce was able to do the same. Despite how much he cared for Betty, she had always been hard for Bruce to fully understand. Not so with Tony. They mutually understood each other, and that built the foundation of their relationship.

The only real snag came when things got more physical between them. They found that they both wanted to take the same role in the bedroom. Tony Stark had been with men, women and everything in-between, but no one had ever topped him. He _was_ Tony Stark after all. He wasn't about to give up control. Bruce, on the other hand had only been with one man before Tony, and he had spent years trying to forget that experience. He knew letting Tony top would inextricably link that memory to sex with Tony, and he couldn't bear the thought. Futhermore, he didn't want to risk an onslaught of bad memories triggering the Hulk while he and Tony were being intimate.

In the end, Bruce had given an ultimatum. Either Tony put aside his pride and bottomed, or sex was out of the question. The billionaire had reluctantly complied. He let Bruce take charge, and then had even given in to the silent request to cuddle that had been written all over Bruce's face afterward. 

Tony will never admit it, but actually loves it when Bruce tops, because it he reminds him of just how much he can trust Bruce. Just like he actually loves cuddling afterward because it's a clear expression of the love, safety and support he has in his relationship with Bruce. It's all an expression of what makes Bruce so much more special than any of his previous bed partners, and he treasures the reminder.

Despite Tony's stubborn, prideful silence on the subject, Bruce knows how he feels. He won't tell Tony he knows, but he's quite relieved in his silent knowledge, because topping and cuddling clearly differentiate Tony from . . . _him_ . . .and allow him to enjoy making love to Tony.

All in all, he and Tony had a good thing going. He loved Tony in a way he had never loved anyone before. But all good things must come to an end. Well, at least for Bruce, they did. And usually sooner rather than later.


	3. The Encounter

Bruce sat staring into his tea and thought about scars, and anchors, and wings. He mulled over the similarities and difference between Betty and Tony. Anything to keep his thoughts from straying to the figure sitting three tables over from him and Tony.

He had noticed the man immediately when he and Tony had entered the coffee shop, but he didn't appear to notice them. He may not even remember Bruce at all. So Bruce had kept silent, even as he wanted to ask Tony to leave.

"You look pretty lost in thought over there, Big Guy," Tony commented over his espresso.

"Yeah, sorry. Miles away," Bruce returned with a weak grin.

"No problem. Are you alright?" he asked.

Bruce considered a moment. Tony would know he was lying if he said he was fine, but he didn't know how much he wanted to tell him. He had thought he was past what had happened that night in college, but apparently he was wrong. Still, telling Tony would mean letting him in on a part of his life he wished had never happened.

"Bruce? It is you!" the man he had been hoping wouldn't noticed him said as he walked over and interrupted Bruce's thoughts.

Bruce froze as he approached, and Tony puzzled why Bruce seemed so upset by the presence of the seemingly friendly stranger.

"Jake, from college, remember? Remember that really wild night during that kegger in your dorm room?" Jake pressed.

Bruce still stayed rooted to his spot as images from that night flashed in front of his eyes. "Wild night." The look in Jake's eyes had been wild as he held Bruce down. As he forced him into submission.

"Really? Bruce doesn't strike me as the wild type. I can't really imagine that," Tony said, his tone cautious as he noticed Bruce's reaction, but still had no explanation for it.

"He just needs a lot of help loosing up. Don't you, Bruce? Although I suppose you'd know that, huh, being the new 'boyfriend' and all?" The man commented, his voice heavy with innuendo.

"Excuse me?" Tony shot back sharply, starting to piece together that there was something very wrong going on here, but still not quite sure what it was.

Across the table, Bruce had gone pale. Completely against his will, his mind had gone back to that night. To sloppy, fumbling hands all over him as he was told to 'loosen up'. To taunts of how he was so tight, ('must be from that stick you constantly have up your ass'), as he was invaded. He tried to stop the flow of memory, but he couldn't.

Jake ignored Tony's statement and turned his full focus on Bruce as he continued his taunting, "Is that why you went for him? Someone with a reputation for not taking no for an answer? A wild, party boy? Someone who's had hundreds of partners? 

Is that what does it for you? See, I knew you'd like it, despite what you said."

Bruce's breath caught briefly, and then continued shaky, ragged and quick. He looked so scared it almost broke Tony's heart. His fear-filled eyes haunted him nearly as much as the new knowledge of _why_ he looked that way.

"Get away from him," Tony growled as he stood and moved between them.

"Touchy, touchy. Jealous that I was there first?" Jake sneered.

"No. Just sickened by you and any man like you who thinks he can just take what he wants," he responded with disgust. "You're a horrible excuse for a human being."

"Wait, now. What are you implying? Because I certainly didn't _take_ anything. 

He was asking for it with his air of superiority. He was _begging_ to be taken down a few notches. Besides, if he _really_ didn't want me to, he would have fought back harder. No _real_ man lets himself be a victim. He must have wanted it on some level," Jake disparaged.

"No, real men don't force themselves on other people. He's at least a hundred times the man you are. Scum like you don't even deserve to be called men," the billionaire returned.

"I'm pretty sure you can't call anyone who can't hold off the advances of a drunk guy a man either. If the other guy is hammered, and you still can't stop him, then you deserve what you got," he excused. "Besides, we were in a room full of people, and none of them thought to intervene. He must not have seemed like he was having such a bad time. . .and he certainly didn't sound like it."

Tony had to restrain himself from strangling the other man. He wanted to make him sorry he had ever laid a finger on Bruce, but he knew that he couldn't. And a quick glance at Bruce showed just how distressed he'd become. He looked like he was on the verge of collapse, so Tony knew what he needed to do.

"You're despicable," Tony spat at Jake over his shoulder as he led Bruce out of the coffee shop.


	4. Loved

"Bruce?" Tony said gently, trying to meet the other man's eyes.

Bruce was still near motionless on the couch, staring into the distance. He had hardly moved since Tony brought him home twenty minutes ago. At first he had tried to give him space, but now he was too worried to continue to ignore his boyfriend's withdrawn behavior.

"Are you alright?" he asked helplessly, knowing the answer was 'no,' but hoping to prompt him to talk.

"I'm sorry," Bruce said quietly.

"What?" Tony asked in surprise.

What did Bruce have to be sorry for?

"I never wanted you to know. I'm sorry. I probably should have told you . . .but I didn't want you to think I was weak. I didn't want you to think I was broken," he admitted.

"You're not weak," Tony countered.

"I couldn't stop him. I tried, but I just couldn't get away. He held me down, and then . . . I couldn't stop him. I'm not even sure I kept fighting after that. I might have just given up. Maybe I did let him," Bruce said distantly.

"Hey! Look at me, Bruce," Tony said gently, reaching out and taking Bruce's hands in his as he waited for eye contact. "It was not your fault."

He spoke clearly and deliberately, but he could see that Bruce was still struggling to believe him.

"It was not your fault. What he did, it was wrong. But none of it was your fault. The only one to blame is him. He hurt you, and he has no excuse. No matter how hard you did or didn't fight him, it doesn't change that," he reassured. "And it doesn't change that you are one of the strongest men I know. 

You've been through so much more pain and betrayal than most people go through in a lifetime, and you're still one of the kindest, most considerate people I know. That takes amazing strength. I could never see you as weak or broken."

Bruce seemed to register his words, but he broke eye contact and curled in on himself anyway. His posture remained defeated, and when he met Tony's gaze again, his eyes seemed to beg for forgiveness and ask if Tony could possibly still love him. 

"Bruce, I love you. I love you so much," Tony said in answer to the unspoken question.

He moved forward slowly, clearly telegraphing his intent, and caught Bruce up in his arms. Bruce accepted the embrace, sinking into it and burying his face between Tony's neck and shoulder. Then, as if a dam had broken, he let out all the emotions he had been holding back. He cried into Tony's shoulder and shuddered in his arms as sobs overtook him. Tony just held him a little tighter and leaned closer to whisper over and over just how loved Bruce was.

Bruce clung tighter. Tony knew his secret, but it wasn't going to break them. Tony didn't blame him; he wasn't going to leave him. He loved him, and for the moment that knowledge was enough to keep the demons at bay.


End file.
